Abstract
Nigerian English coinages have been widely investigated in different
literatures ranging from studies in Sociolinguistics, Semantics,
Pragmatics, and Syntax to Metaphors and Cognitive linguistic studies.
This present paper is a re-visitation of the Nigerian English lexicon,
taking cue from the lexicographic efforts of Igboanusi (2002). We have
sociolinguistically x-rayed some common usages among Nigerians in
different socio-political cum cultural and metaphorical course contents.
Gumperz‟s diffusionist theory was borrowed to strengthen our
theoretical base. Gumperz (1968) proposes a diffusionist theory of the
speech community. The theory postulates the spread of linguistic
change/transfer in intersecting waves that emanate from different
centres of innovation.
Word coinage, compounding and acronyms surfaced as the characteristic
features of Nigerian English coinages. The first feature refers to the
process of creating words to fit particular purposes while compounding
on the other end is the process whereby two or more words are brought
together to form a single lexical item, hyphenated or not. Acronyms are
also identified as means of deriving peculiarly Nigerian nomenclatures
of certain phenomena as words derive from the initials of several words.
Borrowing on its part, was identified in Nigerian English as many words
evolving from cultural and religious backgrounds of Nigerians. These
are referred to as loan or foreign words. These features among others
are recognized as very prominent in the varieties of English being
spoken in Nigeria. Nigerian English lexical forms, therefore find
expression in linguistic perspectives to language change, shift,
transfer and dialectology.
Introduction
When a word or an idiom is employed to express a meaning which it
does not hitherto convey, the meaning and referent are said to have been
expanded. In other words, a change in the sense of a word causes a
modification in the mental content that constitutes the meaning of such
lexical item. A word can be given a new meaning by an individual or by
the general public At times, a coinage receives public acceptance if it
is considered the most appropriate word to capture a concept among a
speech community. This is because the meaning ascribed to a word by its
use in particular context will take precedence over its etymological
derivation. In a nutshell, what this implies is that it is the use of
the words that determines the meanings of words in a sentence (Allan
1986:77-78). This paper will analyze how word derivations and coinages
in Nigeria generate meaning. The words will be discussed from the
perspective of factors leading to their emergence and use. First, to be
discussed in this essay is the „Nigerianess‟ in English.
Nigerian English is a term used to describe the kind of English that
reflects second language incompetence of the target standard forms of
English. It is a phenomenon that has been described widely along the
lines of differing fields of linguistic studies. Popular, among these
studies have investigated English language usage in Nigeria, from the
variational, phonological, grammatical or syntactico-semantic purviews.
Among all these studies, lexical nativization, acculturation, Idiagbon
and Olaniyi, Coinages in English
79
domestication, etc. have been used to describe the kind of English being spoken as a second language in Nigeria.
Lexical and semantic collocations in the Nigerian contexts are
primary, in this paper. The contextual usages of lexical items in
Nigeria have come through several processes. The most productive of
these, in the words of Adegbija (2004:23) include:
- Coinages
- Hybridization
- Analogization
- Direct translation and transliteration
- Transfer
- Affixation
- Accronymization, etc.
Coinages, our focus in this paper, have been situated variously by
researchers within the sociolinguistics of Nigerian English (cf. Odumuh
1987:69-126, Adegbija 2004:23) among several other references. Coinages
or neologism are identified as new terms created for new experiences,
especially where the speaker of the language either experiences dearth
of correct standard lexical item to express himself or uses a word or an
expression to satisfy the communicative purpose of his immediate
environment. Such coinages are sometimes metaphorically explainable and
could be a result of interference or transfer of traits from a speaker‟s
first language to the target language.
Adegbija (2004:24) refers to the sub-standard forms of English as
results of „transfer from culture, sense or meaning from the native
language into English, or reinterpretation or extension of an existing
meaning in English to cover new areas of experience in Nigerian English.
Our purpose in this study is to provide explanations to some common
Nigerian English coinages observed around us in different speech
contexts. The effort here is an attempt to break off from the formalist
approaches to linguistics which is common among researchers. For quite a
while linguists oriented toward formal analysis, showed very little
interest in transfer phenomenon and the entailments of linguistic
behaviour and social communication.
Theoretical Background
Words are sounds. They are graphics when written. They are also the
essentials of a language through which speakers and writers express
themselves. When we speak, we put our thoughts into words. Knowing a
language entails having knowledge of the words or morphemes and sound
sequence in that language. It entails a lexico-semantic knowledge of
what they mean. This knowledge affords one to use the words
appropriately in sentences and understand them when one hears them.
The totality however of words in language constitutes its lexicon.
Any additional information of lexical items in a language comes about as
a result of one or more of the following processes mentioned earlier
above: coinage, acronym, blend, abbreviations, borrowings and
compounding, among others. The introduction of a new word into a
language strikingly draws the attention of the speakers. It must however
be noted that just as new lexical items are added into a language, the
language also losses words due to lack of use.Word coinage, which is our
focus in this paper refers to the process of creating words to fit
particular purposes while acronyms are words derived from the initials
of several words. Compounding on the other end is the process whereby
two or more words are brought together to form a single lexical item,
hyphenated or not. Borrowing on its part, refers to the process by which
some linguistic items of one language or dialect are incorporated into
another language. These are referred to as loan or foreign words. These
features among others are very prominent in the varieties of English
being spoken in Nigeria.
Sociolinguistic approaches to Language Change
The literatures in sociolinguistics that appear relevant to this
study on coinages in Nigerian English are historical in nature. They
find expression in linguistic perspectives to language change, shift,
transfer and dialectology; all insights from Gumperz (1968). Gumperz
(1968) proposed a diffusionist theory of the speech community. The
theory postulates the spread of linguistic change/transfer in
intersecting waves that emanate from different centres of innovation
with intensity proportionate to the prestige of their human carriers.
In contrast with the diffusionist principles is the geneticists.
While geneticists regarded modern language distribution as the result of
the segmentation of older entities into newer and smaller groups,
duffusionists viewed the speech community as a dynamic field of action
where phonetic change, borrowing, language mixture, and language shift
all occur because of social forces. Our interest in this theory is its
recognition of the result of two languages in contact. Gumperz
(1982:223) states that “wherever, two or more speech communities
maintain prolonged contact within a broad field of communication, there
are cross-currents of diffusion. The contact between English language
and the over four hundred Nigerian indigenous languages (see Bendor
Samuel, et al 1994; Adegbija 2004:40-45; Gut and Milde 2002; Grimes
1996; Bamgbose 1971 among others) has necessitated lexico-semantic
shifts and changes in the standard forms of English. These changes are
prominently observed in forms of transfer – linguistically, culturally,
metaphorically and socially.
Cultural Interference and Social Meaning
The Sapir-Whorfian hypothesis is recognized in sociolinguistics
because of its affirmation of the cultural content of language and his
view of culture as the means by which members of the society express
their thoughts and ideas to one another. They add that the
anthropological view that basic differences exist in the thought process
of individuals give rise to a diversity of patterns of a body of
knowledge for each society. Taking a cue from a recent work as that of
Cameron (1997:60), linguistic behaviours of humans are explainable in
terms of the existence of social meaning. For instance, an expression
such as “we need a very long leg to get a good job” requires the
understanding of the Nigerian worldview and the socio-cultural
background of the interlocutors before any meaning can be made out of
the statement by a non-Nigerian. To a Nigerian, the statement would make
meaning because of the existence of a similar experience in the
Nigerian indigenous languages, where ese (leg) is required for certain
privileges and influences. Thus, the transfer of such mother tongue
experience into English informs the use of „long leg‟ in the statement
above. Individual culture is observable in the linguistic behaviour of a
people.
Hymes (1997:12) demonstrates his preoccupation with social meaning
via cultural content of language when he submits that “there is more to
the relationship between sound and meaning than is dreamt of in moral
linguistic theory”. He adds that “in meaning, there is social as well as
referential import‟. In the words of Babatunde (2006:150), Hymes (1997)
affirms that in between the social and referential layers of meaning,
there are other relationships which, though present in social life, are
not evident in ordinary grammar. Hymes‟ concern for social meanings as
contained in linguistic materials is relevant in this study. He sees
means of speech as inseparable from the meanings made of it by the users
of the language. The imports from the discussion above is that
varieties of English as a second language should rather be appreciated
from the socio-cultural perspective than from the linguistic codes.
The implication of the absence of a direct relationship between
language and culture and social meaning is felt more in the educational
system of the society. The assertion that „when the language employed in
the education of a people does not reflect their culture, the
recipients of such an education are bound to be limited in educational
success (Croghan 2000:76-79). This assertion is based on the premise
that African languages exert unavoidable influences on English and
without an attempt to understand these influences, „the evolution of
languages in the New World cannot be clearly explained or understood
(Babatunde& Shobomehin 2006:151)”.
The resultant Nigerian English has been discussed over and over again
in articles and research projects. Quite a number of related articles
however have discussed Nigerian English as an Interlangauge (see Jowitt
1991:53) and sociolinguistic variations of Second Language Acquisition
(see Preston 1989:239; Adesanoye 1973). In Second Language Acquisition
in relation to cultural influences, articles such as (Sapir, 1974:48-49,
Cameroon 1997:66, Panley 1997:1, Trudgil 1974:24; Selinker 1972; Corder
1967, 1971 and Dulay and Burt 1973) among others have stated that
language use is a function of its immediate environment.
On Nigerian English, Jowitt (1991:56) considers the generally agreed
(among linguists) disparity between Nigerian English and the Standard
British English as traits of the learning process. He describes the NE
Interlangauge situation as one replete with so many limitations that
training and education could possibly reduce rather than completely
eradicate; the non-standard forms which have resulted from the learners‟
socio-cultural environment. Adjemian (1976) cited in Preston (1989:239)
sees no difference between a source language and the Interlanguage. On a
positive note he points out that Interlanguages are “permeable‟. In
other words, there is room for shifts, change and transfer of mother
tongue and other socio-cultural features into the source language and
used as such in the new speech community. Adjemian‟s position supports
the reason for the socio-cultural influences in NE which are observable
as coinages. In the next section we shall explore some of the transfer
phenomenon as we have observed in Nigerian English expressions around us
and especially in some of our current dailies.
Data Presentation and Analysis
Coinages in Nigerian English present themselves in different
morphological dimensions. While some of them are used as compound words,
some are one word terms which remain permanent in the lexicon of
Nigerian English (see Igboanusi 2002). The compound words are strung
together to express concepts of the speakers‟ intent. There are several
ways by which words are derived through compounding. It could be through
a combination of noun+noun, adjective+adjective, adjective+noun,
verb+noun, etc.It should be pointed out that most of the compound words
identified in this paper are not context restricted. That is they are
meaningful within the language and have their denotative or connotative
relevance even outside those contexts of use.
The first category of coinages in Nigerian English that would be
discussed in this paper includes those with particular semantic
implication in the Nigerian Socio-Political system. Such examples are
listed follow: Long –Leg, Free-and Fair, Come-of age, Carpet crossing,
no-go-area, Man-of timber and caliber, money bag, political
juggernaut/heavy-weight, political bride, accord Concordia, bottom power
etc., to mention but a few. Many of these lexical items are more or
less transitional in nature. In other words, they are short-lived, they
hardly attain any permanent use because their short spans do not accrue
legitimacy and acceptability to them in order to be incorporated into
the standard Nigerian English lexis. As such, they have restricted use
and are easily lost over time.
The second category referred to as acronyms include NADECO (National
Democratic Electoral Commission), FEDECO (Federal Electoral Commission),
ECOMOG (Ecowas Monitoring Group), MAMSER (Mass Mobilization for social
and Economic Reliance)etc. Others include government agencies such as
NEPA, (National Electric Power Authority), now PHCN (Power Holding
Company of Nigeria) NIPOST, (Nigeria Postal Service) NITEL, (Nigeria
Telecommunications) NAN, (News Agency of Nigeria) NICON (National
Insurance Cooperation of Nigeria) etc. As earlier stated, most of these
words do not stand the test of time. They reach climax in terms of
relevance after they have been introduced, the birth or death of which
are always dictated by a circumstance. For instance, WAI was very
prominent in the mid 1980 when it was introduced by the Buhari-Idiagbon
regime.
The third category of coinages is extracts from pages of Nigerian
newspapers. The newspapers consulted include: The Nation, The Nigerian
Tribune, and The Herald among others. They include: Allah, overjoyed,
the person, quick quick, maiguard, Khaki boys etc. Some of these
examples have been compiled in a dictionary by Igboanusi (2002). As
earlier stated above the NE coinages experience expiry dates; as long as
the government or the governor who sponsored it vacates the position.
Thus the coinages reach climax in terms of relevance after they have
been introduced, the birth and death of which are always dictated by a
circumstance. For instance, WAI was very prominent in the mid 1980 when
it was introduced by the Buhari-Idiagbon regime. The acronym was then on
the lip of every Nigerian. It provided a basis for the nation‟s ethic
and psyche. It was synonymous with transparency, honesty, dedication to
duty, patriotism and orderliness. But when the programme was cancelled
by the succeeding Babangida regime the word lost its potency and faded
out.
Similarly, the cases of FEDECO, NADECO and MAMSER are noteworthy.
FEDECO was prominent in the 2nd Republic but phased out when it was
replaced with NEC during the 3rd Republic and now it has been replaced
with the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) during the
current 4th Republic. National Democratic Coalition (NADECO) was
prominent at the peak of the struggle for the actualization of the
annulled June 12 election but has gradually faded out with the end of
military rule. MAMSER is also another coinage that has lost the
attention it received during the Babangida era before it was renamed –
the National Orientation Agency (NOA). Lack of continuity in most of the
nation‟s policies also contributed to the emergence and loss of these
words.
The word „settlement‟ especially is another word coined to give a
more acceptable picture of bribe, gratification or palm greasing used as
means of winning favour. Although, the word „egunje‟ is more widely
used, „settlement‟ appears more acceptable in official circle.
„Settlement replaces kickback and 20% which were in use at various times
in the past. The scope of use of „settlement‟ is wider than „kickback‟
and 10% because the duo merely cover contract awards. Settlement on the
other hand may include payment for someone to carry out an illegitimate
assignment like payment to influence people‟s decision with money; cover
up crime and fraud, buy or suppress information that is considered
detrimental to one‟s career; to illegitimately pass examination or get a
job, etc. The settlement syndrome often transcends monetary benefit in
terms of times. It involves sexual harassment and bribery. „Bottom
power‟ and „long leg‟, are other coinages that involve the use of sexual
intercourse and money respectively to lobby. In Nigeria, success is at
times determined by one‟s „long leg‟, i.e., who one knows at the topmost
echelon of an organization or the society at large. The use of the word
came to limelight as a result of influence of women‟s sexual influence
popularly referred to as „bottom power‟.
The politicians of the 2nd Republic most especially K.O. Mbadiwe are
credited with coinages such as “accord Concordia”, “man of timber and
caliber”, “juggernaut”, “political heavy weight”, “political bride,”
etc. Mbadiwe coined “accord Concordia” to qualify the soundness of
coming together of the National Party of Nigeria (NPN) and Nigeria
Peoples Party (NPP) symbolized by its presidential candidate, Dr. Nnamdi
Azikiwe. In fact, the ruling and opposition parties did not form a
clear majority in the parliament. Both required the 3rd largest party in
the parliament (NPP) either to assume clear leadership or pose strong
opposition respectively. It is in the attempt to woo Dr. Nnamdi Azikwe
and his NNP to either side that he was nicknamed „political bride‟.
Mbadiwe K.O. also coined „man- of timber and caliber as well as
„political juggernaut‟s of an individual‟s popularity and followership
in his party and constituency. „Carpet crossing‟ referred to decamping
from one political party to join another. A canvasser‟ is one who is
paid to go round to campaign for a particular candidate and make sure
that the people turn up en masse at polling stations on election day.
„Money bags‟ are individuals who assumed leadership of political parties
because they have the enormous financial capacity. They pay the piper
and dictate the tune. This was rampant in the 2nd Republic.
„Maradona,‟ „no go area,‟ „419‟, etc., „step aside‟ are coinages
prominent during the regime of President Babangida. Babangida was
nicknamed Maradona because of the manner of his rulership. It was even a
popular assertion that the only thing that was consistent about him was
his inconsistency. Diego Amando Maradona, a soccer wizard, on the other
hand, as the Argentina football captain in the 1986 world cup dazzled
the entire world with his soccer artistry and scored a controversial
goal with „the hand of God‟. He led Argentina to win the cup and
contributed immensely towards the feat. His soccer prowess is likened to
the way Babangida dribbled Nigerians, and the fact that he was a master
in his own game of unpredictability.
Sociolinguistically, a word such as Allah, i.e., the Arabic language
word for God is traceable to the Arabian nations and Northern Nigeria.
Metaphorically, certain words derive their meanings. For instance the
word „cool‟ in the phrase „cool down‟ is indicative of calming down or
relaxing one‟s temper. The metaphor of calming is thus cooling. Other
examples include „fresh blood‟ to mean „new hands‟ which mean „new set
of employees‟ or „worker‟ to perform specific roles. The sense in
freshness is newness while the sense in blood or hands indicates
„people‟. Metaphors could be understood and used by educated speakers of
English. Thus the usage of metaphoric expressions in Nigerian English
confirms the users‟ cognitive superiority over the ordinary learners of
English. Several other metaphorical expressions are compiled in
Babatunde and Shobomehin (2007:145-172).
Finally, the emergence of most of the words discussed in this paper
is merely circumstantial, a reflection of the situation that bred and
nurtured them. However, these words have no place in Nigerian English
because they do not stand the test of time. They are mere creations of
particular situations and they die gradually with the circumstance that
gave them nature. Most of them exist only in history and not in the
vocabulary of any language.
Conclusion
This paper has attempted to explain the sociolinguistic reasons for
new forms of expressions identified as peculiarly non-native and
Nigerian. We are concluding on the note that most of the coinages in
Nigerian English are a result of the diffusions occurring between two
cultures, i.e., the attempt to express the socio-political and cultural
experiences of Nigeria in Standard English. Were there standard forms of
English in the dictionary or other referential sources, Nigerians would
have consulted such rather than describe events, matters, opinions and
above all ideologies in their own innate experiences.
It is also important that we note that the ability of a non-native
speaker of English to use metaphoric expressions, appropriate to
describe some ideas, is indicative of the speaker‟s level of competence
in the second language. For instance, metaphors shape thoughts and how
thoughts are harnessed is culture bound or dependent. This is the
situation in a non-native English speech community such as Nigerian
English. We hope this paper has corroborated earlier findings or better
still has revealed a new perspective from which Nigerian English
coinages can be viewed.
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